This invention relates in general to portable battery systems for jump starting vehicles, such as automobiles, boats, and the like. In particular, this invention relates to such a portable battery jump start system including a housing having removable charger cords and an integral pouch for conveniently storing the charger cords during non-use.
Virtually all vehicles in common use today, such as automobiles, trucks, boats, and the like, include an engine for providing motive power. A battery is typically provided on such vehicles to store electrical energy for use in starting the engine. Once the engine is started, the battery is typically re-charged for subsequent use. However, it is well known that the vehicle battery may occasionally become sufficiently drained of electrical energy as to become unable to start the vehicle engine. For example, a vehicle battery may lose its charge as a result of extensive use, a failure of the re-charging system of the vehicle, weather conditions, or when the lights or other electrical accessories of the vehicle are left on when the engine is turned off.
When this occurs, it is well known to "jump-start" the vehicle using a charged battery contained in a different vehicle. Typically, this jump-starting process is accomplished by moving another vehicle having a charged battery adjacent to the disabled vehicle, connecting electrical cables in parallel across the charged and discharged batteries, and starting the disabled vehicle. This method suffers from the well known drawbacks of requiring that another vehicle be readily available and positioning the two vehicles sufficiently close together to permit the electrical cables to extend therebetween.
To alleviate these drawbacks, a number of portable battery jump start systems are known in the art. A typical portable battery jump start system includes a housing containing battery and a pair of electrical cables. The cables may be either permanently secured to the housing or may be removable connected thereto. In either event, the electrical cables are relatively long to facilitate the connection of the ends thereof to the discharged battery contained in the disabled vehicle. The portable battery jump start system is designed to be stored within the vehicle for emergency use when needed. Typically, the portable battery jump start system can store a sufficient amount of electrical energy to perform several jump starts, after which it must be re-charged by connection to a source of electrical energy. Thus, most portable battery jump start systems are also provided with an electrical power cord that can be plugged into a conventional household electrical outlet for re-charging.
When the portable battery jump start system is not in use, it is desirable that it be stored neatly and carefully for subsequent use. However, as mentioned above, the electrical cables and the power cord are relatively long and inconvenient for storage. Furthermore, in those portable battery jump start systems where the electrical cables are removable connected to the housing, the electrical cables are frequently disconnected therefrom and may become lost or damaged. Thus, it would be desirable to provide an improved portable battery jump start system having a structure for conveniently storing the electrical cables and power cords during non-use.